Bale's Genius and the Greatest Moments from This Week's International Friendlies

Gareth Bale won't be at this summer's World Cup—and his chances of ever appearing at the tournament are quite slim—but he certainly put on a world-class performance in Wales' 3-1 win over Iceland on Wednesday.

Elsewhere during a busy international week, there were bog victories for Brazil and Japan, while the Netherlands and the USA were humbled by defeat.

Spain Brought the Pain to Italy

One of the most enticing friendlies of the week ended up being one of the least entertaining, as a 63rd-minute goal from Pedro made the difference between Spain and Italy.

Debutante Diego Costa—who has started for two separate countries in matches against Italy in the space of a year—had a fairly underwhelming match. That suggests he might not be the threat to Brazil's World Cup chances that many media sources have suggested.

The Netherlands Were Sunk by Two Brilliant French Goals

The other big-name friendly of the week, France versus the Netherlands, was a much more interesting affair.

Both teams looked strong, but Les Bleus definitely had the edge at the Stade de France. Karim Benzema scored a beautiful volley in the 32nd minute, and Paris Saint-Germain's Blaise Matuidi added another lovely aerial strike nine minutes later, which was his first for his country.

Japan Took 17 Minutes to Score Four Goals Against New Zealand

Down in the AFC, Japan took a 4-0 lead over New Zealand after just 17 minutes of play. Among the scorers was Shinji Kagawa, who converted a penalty for his first national team goal in six months. The Manchester United midfielder also set up Shinji Okazaki for the first goal after four minutes.

The Kiwis pulled two back as Japan eased their foot off of the accelerator later in the match, but it was not enough for a full-scale fightback, with the game ending 4-2.